Regional Impacts

Inland Empire Region

For the purposes of this study, the Inland Empire was defined to include San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Cal Poly Pomona and CSU San Bernardino are the two CSU campuses serving the region.

Together, these two campuses have a direct impact of $854 million, including:

$474 million in operational expenditures;

$98 million in capital expenditures;

$100 million in auxiliary expenditures;

$182 million in off-campus spending by students from outside the region.

The CSU campuses in the Inland Empire have a total regional spending impact of more than $515 million. This impact creates more than 5,700 jobs in the region, and generates more than $30 million in tax revenue for state and local governments. $3.2 billion of the earnings by alumni from the Inland Empire campuses is attributable to their CSU degrees.

In addition to the regional impact that Cal Poly Pomona and CSU San Bernardino have on the Inland Empire region, there are statewide impacts associated with leakages from spending beyond the immediate region. Statewide, Inland Empire campuses create a total spending impact of $1.5 billion, support more than 12,500 jobs and generate nearly $93 million in tax revenue for state and local governments. Moreover, when the enhanced earning power of Inland Empire CSU alumni is considered, the campuses produce a combined total direct annual impact of $4.6 billion for the state economy, which creates a total spending impact of $5.5 billion. This level of economic activity supports nearly 38,000 jobs annually in the state and generates close to $386 million in annual tax revenue for the state and local governments.

In 2008-09, state appropriations totaled nearly $277 million to Inland Empire campuses, and for every dollar invested, $1.89 in regional and $5.39 in statewide spending is generated. When the impact of the enhanced earnings of Inland Empire CSU graduates is included, the ratio rises to nearly $20 in total spending impact for every dollar the state invests.